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Here in the AWID Community, we believe that building the transformations we want to see in the world starts with ourselves and how we treat each other. We are dedicated to creating and protecting safe and supportive spaces for our communities both online and in person. We also consider that safe and welcoming spaces are co-created.

We are dedicated to building the AWID Community together as a space that invites and challenges us all to operate from a place of courage, curiosity, generosity and shared responsibility.

We are committed to building a space free from harassment and violence regardless of one’s gender identity or expression, race, ability, religion, language, ethnicity, age, occupation, sexual orientation, body size or physical appearance.

To accomplish this, all AWID Community members agree to be bound by and accountable to these Community Agreements in all interactions and engagements on the AWID Community platform.

Purpose of the AWID Community Agreements

The Community Agreements aim to

Collectively build the AWID Community as a space that requires all of us to share responsibility with bringing our truths and experiences to the space. We will act courageously, take responsibility for our actions and how they may impact others, as well as keep confidentiality.
Define shared principles of engagement and a shared understanding of what is considered a violation within the Community.
Make clear the process of accountability and conflict resolution that will be implemented in the AWID Community.

Principles of Engagement in the AWID Community

We commit to co-creating the AWID Community as a space to

Connect with care

Connect with others, help break isolation and further solidarity. It’s easy to feel lost and alone, and a little friendliness and responsiveness goes a long way.
Be honest, open and heartfelt. Speak and share authentically about your experiences, your challenges, your hopes and dreams, and your vision for your own life and your community.
Practice active listening and learning, interact and engage peacefully. Legitimate differences in opinion will naturally arise, so please consider these differences as useful for expanding your ways of seeing the world.
Listen and make adjustments in your behavior and ways of engaging if someone says they feel uncomfortable. Don’t ask others questions that you wouldn't want to be asked yourself.
Stay safe! We encourage you to take measures to protect yourself online and in person, especially if you have reason to believe that speaking out will put you in danger. Members may use aliases or profile images that conceal their identity. For more information please refer to the “Digital Security First Aid Kit for Human Rights Defenders” produced by APC - Association for Progressive Communications.

Respect

Help build a space that recognizes, validates and celebrates multiple lived experiences and diversities of bodies and gender expressions. Recognize that we all carry intersectional identities.
Use inclusive language.
Be respectful of people’s identities and self-determination and always make sure to use people’s preferred pronouns.
Avoid oppressive language and behavior, which includes harassment, verbal or physical violence, violation of consent, and any action that perpetuates classism, ageism, ableism, racism, misogyny, heterosexism, transphobia and other oppressions. If needed, please reach out to AWID staff.
Be mindful and credit others for their work and activism. Remember that we are all working collectively to contribute to change-- Ensure that you recognize the contribution of others and credit them when appropriate e.g. in discussions, or in articles, pictures etc.
Respect the privacy needs of others! Do not share or forward any information without explicit permission. As a rule of thumb, what is shared within the AWID Community by members should stay within the AWID Community, please obtain prior consent before sharing content posted by other members externally.

What to expect from AWID in this space?

AWID will communicate our processes and policies clearly and transparently.
We will take quick action to reduce harm.
We will engage in continuous listening and learning to improve member experience of the AWID Community.

Violations of AWID Community Agreements

Offensive or unwelcome comments, including, slurs, negative stereotyping, and discriminatory remarks disguised as humor, based on gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, religion, age, disability, or physical appearance;
Distribution, display, or discussion of written or graphic material that ridicules, insults, or shows hostility or disrespect toward an individual or group because of gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, religion, age, disability, or physical appearance;
Deliberate “outing” of any aspect of a person’s identity without their consent;
Deliberate or repeated misgendering or use of rejected names;
Intimidation or silencing, including sustained and deliberate disruption of discussion;
Threats of violence or incitement of violence, including encouraging a person to engage in self-harm;
Stalking or following, including repeated one-on-one communication despite requests to cease, continued communications with the intent to harass, annoy, or alarm, unwanted photography or recording, and tracking and logging online activity without consent;
Failure to safeguard confidential or privately shared information, including publication of private communication without consent;
Unwelcome sexual attention, including innuendoes, suggestive comments, jokes of a sexual nature, sexual propositions, lewd remarks and obscene gestures, and requests for sexual favors (including repeated and unwelcome requests for dates)

We believe that reporting instances of harassment or bullying is not easy, we understand the power dynamics at play, and are committed to supporting those who come forward and continually improving our processes.

AWID reserves the right to delete comments, suspend or revoke membership when our Community Agreements have been violated.

AWID Community members are not authorized to represent AWID in any official capacity. Members cannot use AWID Community spaces to proselytize or recruit members to join a religious faith or organization. Members cannot use AWID Community spaces to request funds for personal use although links to external fundraising efforts or activism campaigns are permissible.

How to report a post or contact us about a violation?

If you are concerned that the AWID Community Agreements are being violated, or would like to reach out for support there are three ways in which you can do so

Submit your concerns via the Get Support form on the AWID Community platform.
Report a post on the Live Feed or The Kitchen Table by clicking on the three dots at the top right hand corner of the post or thread.
Write directly to Michelle D’cruz - Membership and Constituency Engagement Coordinator at [email protected].

We will actively listen to your concerns and ask questions as needed to advance the resolution. In consultation with you, the point person will discuss possible solutions.

How we respond to information about violations?

Depending on the severity of the complaint, the response may include:

An intervention or reminder of the Community Agreements in the AWID Community space.
Removal of the post in question, a public message will be posted to indicate that a post was removed and the reasons for removal.
A conversation with the Membership and Constituency Engagement Coordinator and the person accused of causing harm asking that they immediately stop the behavior.
A mediated conversation between the person making the complaint and the person accused of causing harm.
Removing the person accused of causing harm from the AWID Community space.

In the absence of someone filing a complaint with the Membership and Constituency Engagement team or through the form on the AWID Community, those found to be disrupting the space will be asked to immediately stop their behavior. If they persist, they may be asked to leave the AWID Community. Any removal or banning of an individual from the AWID Community will be reviewed by AWID staff and leadership.

Violations by AWID Staff

In the instance where the person accused of causing harm is an AWID staff person, the Membership and Constituency Engagement Director (if not implicated) and an AWID Community member (external to the organization) will act as the supporting body tasked with receiving the complaint and helping to develop an appropriate resolution process.

Disclosure

Given the nature of AWID Community spaces like the Live Feed and The Kitchen Table, where AWID does not approve content before it is posted, and anyone logged in is able to see posts, violations and actions taken to address the situation will be posted on the AWID Community platform on a quarterly basis.

We will prioritize confidentiality and will respect confidentiality requests made. We will not disclose the names of those harmed without their expressed consent.

When and where do the Community Agreements apply?

Community Agreements apply in all AWID Community programs, events, and spaces, both online and offline.

AWID Privacy Policy, Your rights to privacy and cookies

This policy governs all pages hosted at www.awid.org, and any other websites under the control of the AWID (the “Website”) and registrations for these sites. It does not apply to pages hosted by organisations other than AWID, to which we may link and whose privacy policies may differ. Please read the following policy to understand our privacy policy regarding nature, purpose, using and sharing of your personal identifiable information that is collected via this website.

1. Types of information collected on this site

Generally, you can browse this website without submitting your personal information to us. However, in some circumstances, we will ask for your personal information.

1.1 Information you provide to us

When you are on the website and are asked for personal information, you are sharing that information only with AWID.

1.1.1 The information you provide to get updates from AWID:

When you register to use the website – for example, subscribe to receive emails from us or apply to become a member - you provide us with the mandatory information about you like Name, country, language to receive email updates and email address. This information is provided by you through secure forms and is stored on secure servers.

1.1.2 The payment information you provide to become member or registering for a paid event:

Also, while becoming a member or registering for events, you may need to provide payment information. AWID doesn’t store any credit card information on its servers and uses payment gateway to process the payment information.

1.1.3 The optional information you chose to give us as AWID member (with consent)

When you communicate with AWID, provide optional information through forms on the website or use the site to communicate with other members, we collect information about your communication and any information you choose to provide.

1.1.4 Information you provide us through contact forms or when you directly communicate with us

When you communicate with us, we collect your communication and any other information you choose to provide us.

1.2 Information that is automatically collected (third party cookies)

In addition, when you interact with the Website, our servers may keep an activity log that does not identify you individually (“Non-Personal Information”). Generally, we collect the following categories of Non-Personal Information:

We may collect certain demographic data such as age and gender as part of collecting personal information;
We collect and store certain device information about your computer, mobile device, or other device that you use to access the Website. This information may include IP address, geolocation information, unique device identifiers, browser type, browser language, and other transactional information;
We automatically log certain usage information about your use of the Website. This information includes a reading history of the pages you view. We use this information to provide you with a more customized experience on the Website;
We collect and store additional “traffic data” such as time of access, date of access, software crash reports, session identification number, access times, and referring website addresses; and
We collect and store your search terms and search results.
We also collect and store certain other information regarding our users’ use of the Website so that third parties may provide us with reports and analysis regarding usage and browsing patterns of the Website.

For more information about cookies, please see www.allaboutcookies.org.

If you do not wish to receive cookies you can easily modify your web browser to refuse cookies, or to notify you when you receive a new cookie, see how here.

2. Use of information collected on this website

AWID uses the information we collect about you to:

Better understand how you are using our website and what we could do to improve your experience.
Communicate with you via email to share resources and analysis in the field of women's rights, connect with you and provide opportunities to engage with our work, keep you updated about developments at AWID and with our partners.
Comply with our legal obligations to:
- Detect and prevent fraud, spam, abuse, security incidents, and other harmful activity.
- Conduct security investigations and risk assessments.
- Verify or authenticate information provided by you (such as to verify your authorization to act as an agent on behalf of a nonprofit organization).
- Conduct checks against databases and other information sources, to the extent permitted by applicable laws.
- Resolve any disputes with any of our users or customers and enforce our agreements with third parties.
- Enforce our Terms of Use and other policies.

3. Distribution of information

If you have subscribed to AWID´s e-newsletters or email updates or you have become a member, we will send you regular communications as specified in the relevant area of the website. You are able to unsubscribe from any of the e-newsletters or email updates at any time by using the unsubscribe information provided in our emails.

4. Accessing, changing and removing information

The accuracy of your individual identifying information is important to AWID. We are always looking for ways to make it easier for you to review and correct the information that AWID maintains about you through our website. If you change your email address, or if any of the other information we hold is inaccurate or out of date, please write to us here.

Where you have provided AWID with consent to use your personal data, you can withdraw it any time by sending us a communication and specifying which consent you are withdrawing. Please note that the withdrawal of your consent does not affect the lawfulness of any processing activities based on such consent before its withdrawal.
Where applicable, you may also have a right to receive a machine-readable copy of your personal data. If you would like to have a copy of the personal data we hold on you or if you think that we hold incorrect personal data about you, please write to us.
You also have the right to ask us to delete your personal data or restrict how it is used. There may be exceptions to the right to erasure for specific legal reasons which, if applicable, we will set out for you in response to your request.
At any time, regardless of applicable law, you may object to us processing your personal information for direct marketing purposes. You may, at any time, ask AWID to cease processing your data for these direct marketing purposes by Contacting Us.

5. Sharing information

Except as explained below, AWID will not disclose any of your personally identifiable information, and will not sell or rent lists containing your information to third parties. AWID may disclose information when it has your permission to do so or under special circumstances, such as when it believes in good faith that the law requires it.

6. Information security

We are continuously implementing and updating administrative, technical, and physical security measures to help protect your information against unauthorized access, loss, destruction, or alteration. Some of the safeguards we use to protect your information are firewalls and data encryption, and information access controls. If you know or have reason to believe that your AWID membership credentials have been lost, stolen, misappropriated, or otherwise compromised or in case of any actual or suspected unauthorized use of your AWID membership account, please contact us through on Contact Us.

7. Changes to this policy & Contacting us

This policy may change from time to time. The changed policy will be posted on this website and Last updated date at the end of the policy will be updated. There will be an email update sent to you for the revised policy and if you do not agree with the revised policy, you will have the option to cancel you registration(s) with us. You can also write to us here. We welcome your feedback!

By logging into your account, you accept the Terms of Use and acknowledge the Privacy Policy